Why Today’s Producers Guild Picks Matter

Earlier today the Producers Guild of America announced its ten nominations for the best film of 2011. Why should you care about who made the cut? Two words: Oscars pool. As Pete Hammond over at Deadline explains, these picks have a major impact on awards season, particularly when it comes to predicting the Academy Award nominations for Best Picture. What’s more, for the past two years, the PGA’s Best Picture winner — The Hurt Locker in 2009 and The King’s Speech in 2010 — surprised everyone by ousting the presumed Oscar frontrunners (Avatar and The Social Network, respectively).

That’s really exciting news for a film like Bridesmaids, which, thanks to another recent nod from the Screen Actors Guild, looks to be a major contender when the nominees for the 84th Academy Awards are announced later this month. Meanwhile, the omission of Terrence Malick’s critical darling and Palme d’Or Cannes winner The Tree of Life from the PGA’s list has most people now questioning its Best Picture race odds. Ditto for Drive and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. Wondering what other films got snubbed? Head over to the PGA’s website for the full list of nominees.